Continue reading this article for a preview of the CD.It’s taken us a few weeks, but we’ve finally discovered the meaning behind the mysterious and enchanted pieces delivered to me via owl. We, staff members and site visitors, helped me in figuring out that it was an album. This morning, however, the spell encrypting the puzzle pieces dissolved itself. The colorful “tangerine spaghetti” clips ended up being the album artwork, clearly contributed by Frak Franco, while the screen shots established the album’s track list. It’s taken me a few hours (and several handfuls of owl food) to gather the remaining details.

Like many a wizard rock CD, Siriusly Smiling is a charitable and collaborative collection of music from 20 artists on 19 tracks organized by none other than Jarrod of Gred and Forge. The organization benefiting from the release of this album is the National Foundation for Facial Reconstruction, which helps children with facial deformities get the surgeries they need to live normal lives.

“Every time I’ve read a story about a child born with a severe disfigurement or [how they] become that way through an accident or fire, my heart really goes out to them,” Jarrod explained when asked about his choice. He continued, “We might freak out if we have a zit or something, so put yourself in their shoes with everyone always staring at [them]… I wanted to do an album with a happy theme, hence the name. The music is funny, poppy, and just a great time.”

The mixture of genres produced by the varying artists will undoubtedly give Siriusly Smiling a unique sound. Jarrod said, “I came up with the idea about three months ago and contacted a bunch of my wizard rocking friends. Everyone that I contacted submitted a track. That really shows the dedication and charity of these wizard rockers. Split Seven Ways and Remus and the Lupins were extra bonuses and were added by other artists already on the comp.”

Unlike a lot of wizard rock CDs, however, Siriusly Smiling is to be purchased via iTunes only.

“I chose to do it [through] iTunes only for two reasons,” explained Jarrod. “First, it’ll make more money for the charity as there is a lot less overhead… No duplication costs, shipping, lost-in-the-mail orders, or overstock. Second was for ease of distribution. Packaging, addressing, and mailing out hundreds of CD’s is not an easy task for a group of people (like the EP Club), so for a single person it could cause delays as I just don’t have the time to do it!”

Click here to listen to clips from 10 of the following songs.

The status of the 19 track CD is currently pending. Keep an eye out on Gred and Forge‘s MySpace for when the CD is fully available. We’ll update this entry as well. In the meantime, the track listing is as follows:

1. “Dobby, Band Your Head”, The Blibbering Humdingers
2. “Creepy Mustache”, Remus and the Lupins
3. “Brotherly Love”, Gred and Forge
4. “Werewolves > Zombies”, The Remus Lupins
5. “Miss Bulstrode”, Justin Finch-Fletchley & the Sugar Quills
6. “An Entering Hogwarts First Year Expresses His Concerns”, The Mudbloods
7. “Every Time…”, Catchlove
8. “Worth Fighting For”, The Butterbeer Experience
9. “Lavender Brown”, Tom Riddle and Friends
10. “Again, Dennis?”, Creevey Crisis
11. “Vernon Dursley”, Harry and the Potters
12. “Reflection of the Human Condition #1”, The Whomping Willows
13. “Give It Up”, Oliver Boyd & the Remembralls
14. “The Human Cold Shower”, Hogwarts, A History (feat. Split Seven Ways)
15. “1st Year Haircut”, Draco and the Malfoys
16. “Snog Song”, The Moaning Myrtles (feat. The Butterbeer Experience)
17. “Pansy Looks Like a Dude”, Neville’s Diary
18. “Keep Your Branch to Yourself”, Tonks and the Aurors
19. “The Year Harry Went Emo”, Peeved